Houston was pegged as a lengthy +1400 bet at the end of spring training last season, but quickly climbed the 2018 World Series odds after opening the year on a 29-12 run, entering the month of June as a +425 favorite.

The Astros closed out the campaign with over 100 wins for just the second time in franchise history to take the AL West division title, but needed 18 postseason games to finally clinch a victory in the Fall Classic and pay out as +140 underdogs on the series prices.

Pegged as World Series betting favorites throughout the second half of the campaign, the Dodgers were denied their first championship banner since 1988 by a heartbreaking 5-1 Game 7 loss to Houston, bringing a disappointing close to a season in which they led the majors with 104 wins.

Winners of 102 games in 2017, the Cleveland Indians round out the top of the 2018 World Series odds at +750, ahead of the hard-luck Washington Nationals at +1000, and a trio of clubs at +1100 including the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago Cubs.

Indians Faltered During 2017 Playoffs

The Indians ended the regular season on a spectacular 33-4 run to trail only Los Angeles on the World Series odds entering October, but blew a 2-0 series lead en route to a five-game loss to the Yankees in their ALDS matchup, extending the club’s championship drought to 69 years.

The Nationals made an early postseason exit for the fourth time since the franchise relocated from Montreal at the end of the 2004 season, bowing out to the Cubs in a five-game NLDS matchup. But Washington easily won its fourth NL East title in six years by a 20-game margin, positioning the Nationals to contend once again in 2018.

The Yankees exceeded expectations by taking the Astros to seven games in the ALCS after opening the season sporting long +2500 World Series championship odds. The Red Sox will be gunning for a third straight AL East title in 2018, but are just 1-6 in the postseason in the past two seasons.

Further down the 2018 World Series odds, the New York Mets join the St. Louis Cardinals at +2200, while the Arizona Diamondbacks join the Toronto Blue Jays at +2800, ahead of the Colorado Rockies at +4000, and the surprising Minnesota Twins at +6600.